Local Search & Online Marketing

Local Listings Help Your Business Website Appear in Local Search Results

Whether eCommerce, Facebook, Yelp or old fashioned on-site SEO, there are many avenues to increasing your visibility online. Navigating these digital channels takes keeping up with information that is changing on the daily. An agency partner like Explore That Store will help keep you informed and advocate for the tools and connections that will facilitate the flow of business online.

There are some easy ways to think about the big digital data world of Online Marketing.

The Local Search Ecosystem

Local Search is an important element of online marketing and it is a huge ecosystem to navigate. Local search is a crucial element for brick and mortar locations and service providers because it helps people in your area to find you. We know it can be confusing to navigate the big world of search and we know how frustrating it can be when you want to get your business listed and visible in the right places. That’s why we’re here to help.

We help bring your business website from idea to conception to profitability. Then we support your needs to keep your marketing presence fresh and targeted in the right direction. For some this is Local Search Optimization, for others an Online Marketing program is a better fit. Both Online Marketing and Local Search work together.

What is SEO & Online Marketing all about?

SEO is popular term short for Search Engine Optimization. SEO is all about honing your online presence to attract attention for very specific purposes like increasing your rank in Google search engine results. There are a wide variety of tactics to achieve this.

Online marketing is a broad phrase that refers to all the marketing you can do on the internet. It can include SEO but it also includes Email Marketing, Social Media Marketing and other Off-site citations like Yelp, Yellowpages and other notable directories where people search for information.

Due to smartphones and GPS features and functionality, local search is even more important than ever which makes directories very important to do right the first time. Time and again we find businesses that have listed their business incorrectly or not at all! This accounts for nearly 1/3 of all search traffic so missing out is a huge loss for any business owner.

Business Signage Beyond Your Front Door

The other important reason local search is so important has to do with the consumer point of view. When someone searches their phone they are ready to make a buying decision. Some studies report that as many as half of people who search from a smartphone go to the location within one day.

Think of your local search citations (directories) as your business signage beyond your front door. Sure someone can see your beautiful big sign from the street or even down the street, but if you want exposure from miles away you need to come up on Google maps, or Yelp, Apple Maps and other apps that people use regularly. That’s local search.

Get on the phone where people can find you and get local consumers who are looking for your business – in the door.